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“I’m fine,” he said, touching the back of his head where it had hit something on the way down.
“Looks like you got a bit of a goose egg but you should be okay,” the woman’s voice said. Thomas turned to see a petite woman dressed in little more than a bathing suit and shorts frowning up at him. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t see you guys at all until your friend shouted.”
“It’s alright,” Thomas told her, rubbing at his neck and looking around to see Danny being helped up by a man and Mark.
“Fuck, he left finger impressions on you,” she said reaching up for Thomas’s throat but stopping when he stood taller. “John, isn’t there a police station around here?”
“Yeah, just up the road,” the man who helped Danny up answered, his hand still on Danny’s shoulder.
He’s shaking, Thomas realized, seeing the tremble in Danny’s arms and taking a step closer to him. To his surprise, Danny seemed to lean away from him, clenching and unclenching his hands.
“What do we do,” Kevin whispered, standing closer to Thomas so the woman wouldn’t hear him.
It took a moment for Thomas to register what Kevin was asking him or that he had been holding his hand out towards Danny. He let his hand drop as he looked away and towards the street.
There were people moving around, pockets of them clustered together outside of businesses trying to get in, groups leaving one place and going to another, but no sign of Peacock or any of the men from the restaurant.
His skin crawled where Peacock had touched him and he wasn’t surprised by the woman saying there were markings. Pale skin marked easily but Peacock had started losing control. If they hadn’t been in a public place-
“Thomas?”
“We need to get back to the hotel,” he said quietly. “We need to get in touch with people to let them know what’s going on and we need to get off this island.” He looked at the man and woman, considering them carefully.
They certainly looked like a normal honest couple in their twenties on vacation. Thomas knew plants could do that but their concern seemed genuine. The woman even looked as if she was going to cry as she continued to look at them in turn.
“I’m sorry to ask,” he said, looking between her and John, “but you wouldn’t happen to have a car to give us a lift back to our hotel would you?”
“We do but… are you sure you don’t want to go to the police,” John asked, glancing at Danny then back at Thomas. “Or maybe a hospital? You hit your head pretty hard on the way down and I think your friend hurt something too.”
Thomas looked at Danny, frowning at him as Danny seemed to look everywhere but at Thomas. “Dann-”
“I’m fine,” he said abruptly. “Just bruised from getting knocked over. Everything’s fine!”
“We can take care of them,” Mark said, looking at John and forcing a smile as he nodded towards Kevin. “He plays full contact football so I’ve been through a few concussions by now. I think we just need the sleep, right, Tom?” He glanced at Thomas.
“Right,” Thomas said slowly, forcing himself to look away from Danny and back to John. “We’ll make a report tomorrow.”
“Alright,” John said a bit hesitantly. “We’ll give you guys a lift back and leave you our contact information. We’ll be witnesses for what happened. I didn’t get a great look at the guy but maybe we caught his face on the video.” He pointed to a body camera on his shoulder and Thomas almost laughed.
Perfect. “Thanks, we appreciate that.”
* * *
Seong was helping cut vegetables in Felinus and Issac’s kitchen when his phone buzzed on the bar.
“It’s Thomas again,” Tiger said as he leaned forward to peer down at it. “You should answer it.”
“I will call him back in just a minute,” Seong sighed, wondering what had Thomas in such a twist that he would call three times in a row. “I’m nearly done.”
“Isn’t he supposed to be making out with that boyfriend of his on a beach or something,” Bat asked, popping open a canned beer as he sat next to the phones and peered over them.
Seong’s jaw tightened as he chopped cabbage a little more aggressively.
“Snake,” Brutus said from the stove, “curve it back or put it down. You know the rules in my kitchen.”
Bat gave Seong what passed for an apologetic smile and Seong had no heart to hold his comment against him. Of everyone in the room, Bat understood wanting to be with someone and not being able to have the relationship he desired. The man was crass, but far from heartless. He glanced at Seong’s phone when the screen lit up again. The smile fell immediately and he looked up at Tiger, who was also looking at the phone.
“Give me the knife,” Tiger ordered, his hand covering Seong’s with a surprising gentleness.
